Jesus Offers a Black Friday Deal
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The final Sunday of the church year -- known as Christ the King Sunday -- celebrates the Reign of Christ in the world and our station as his loyal subjects and sheep. But as team member Mary Austin points out in the next installment of The Immediate Word, that imagery seems rather quaint in a modern world that has little experience with either kings or shepherds. That’s especially true when this Sunday has to compete with one of the secular culture’s high holidays -- the busiest shopping weekend of the year, punctuated by Black Friday deals enticing consumers into retail outlets (not to mention Cyber Monday, promoting online shopping). Compared to the immediacy and visceral feedback of Black Friday, Christ’s kingdom seems like a distant concept with little relevance for our everyday lives. And yet, as Mary notes, the deal Jesus offers us -- to be a sheep rather than a goat -- is a far more important offer to take advantage of than ephemeral Black Friday bargains. Moreover, it’s an offer that’s not heavily advertised -- as Mary reminds us, we accept the invitation to Jesus’ kingdom through small actions in our everyday lives.
Team member Chris Keating shares some additional thoughts on one area where we might indicate our readiness for the kingdom -- our actions in responding to the crisis of addiction gripping our society. Are we sheep or are we goats? Chris suggests that Team Sheep would offer helping care and treatment, while Team Goat is more likely to advocate for criminalizing drug use -- engaging in judgment that perhaps should be reserved for our real Sovereign.
Jesus Offers a Black Friday Deal
by Mary Austin
Matthew 25:31-46
Jesus needs a better publicist... maybe some social media help. Black Friday shopping now has its own website, dedicated to curating the best deals available. Amazon is offering a whole week of sales, USA Today tells us where to shop, and even Forbes magazine has its business writers evaluating deals and giving advice.
Competing with Black Friday this weekend is Christ the King Sunday, with no deals, no media frenzy, and no website -- just a story about sheep and goats. It’s easy to see why Black Friday is the bigger deal. Almost every American is aware of Black Friday, and some of us love the thrill of the hunt. We “delight over the idea of fighting over the last Nintendo Wii, or whatever the item of the year happens to be.” Competition creates the feeling of hunting for something scarce, which creates positive emotions in us. “At certain levels, consumers enjoy arousal and challenges during the shopping process,” researcher Sang-Eun Byun told the Washington Post’s Olga Khazan. “They enjoy something that’s harder to get, and it makes them feel playful and excited.”
No one ever feels playful and excited about Christ the King. Living in a country without kings, we don’t really know what to make of this image. Calling it the “Realm of Christ Sunday” helps, but it’s still way less visceral and immediate than 55-inch TVs on sale and deeply discounted iPhones.
In the News
Just like the sheep and the goats in Jesus’ parable, there are two groups of people on Black Friday. There are “the ones who stand in line, and the ones who think those other people are wacky. If you’re the latter, you may even spend your Friday morning watching news footage of the mayhem and rolling your eyes.”
According to the Atlantic, our brains are wired to love things like Black Friday. Standing is line is a holiday shopping ritual that speaks to our need for kinship, and “loyalty has to do with the tradition behind Black Friday, found a study out of Winthrop University.” Coupons evoke a positive feeling, and one scientist says we view them “as a social gesture. ‘We’re so engrained to being social creatures that even receiving a coupon online is viewed by the brain as a social experience.... We’re building a relationship with an online shopping site like it’s a personal relationship.’ The same study also found that coupons reduced stress and increased happiness in some participants. Ergo, on Black Friday, the biggest coupon day of the year must make this hormone go wild in some shoppers’ brains, making it a very relaxing and lovely experience.” Black Friday is about social connection, not just buying things.
And it evokes a wealth of positive experiences, at least for the shoppers. The Atlantic also notes: “The people who choose to partake in Black Friday will likely associate many of its aspects with positive feelings. In fact, the day doesn’t evoke angry or related emotions for many of its participants, found a study from Eastern Illinois University. The researchers observed consumer behaviors and emotions on that day and... calmness, happiness, and courteousness ranked higher than anger and anxiety.”
Other shoppers and even retailers are opting out of Black Friday, and “taking a stand against Black Friday, or at least its capitalist undertones: REI, for the third time in a row, will close its doors on Black Friday and instead promote its #OptOutside campaign, encouraging people to spend time outdoors; Everlane often donates proceeds to its factory workers; and Patagonia last year donated 100 percent of Black Friday sales to environmental causes.”
Black Friday reveals again the gap between wealthy people and poor people. Videos of shoppers fighting over deals allow us to feel disdain for poor people instead of empathy. “Look at these hilarious poor people, struggling to take advantage of a deal on something they might not otherwise be able to afford on items that we take for granted, we joke on Twitter. The message is the same: this is shameful, materialistic behavior. And by pointing it out, we differentiate ourselves, reaffirm our class status as being above the fray of the lowly and desperate. The exact demography of shoppers on Thanksgiving and Black Friday isn’t clear, with the former being too new a trend to track, and it seems to have been changing over recent years, with a higher percentage of millennials taking part of late, but studies have shown the shoppers are more likely to be non-white, or single mothers. There’s no denying the demographics that seem to show up again in the type of videos we all find so hilarious, however.” Black Friday shopping looks materialistic, and it may instead be an act of devotion. It can be the one opportunity to buy a child or loved one the gift they want, at a price someone can afford. Perhaps, if done with that spirit of generosity, it’s a participation in God’s realm.
In the Scriptures
In this parable, the kingdom of God has a hidden quality. It’s not immediately obvious when the invitation comes. It’s certainly not as well advertised as any Black Friday sale. Both groups of people -- the sheep and the goats -- have the opportunity to embrace the cause of Jesus. They encounter the same people in need, and they see the same things. Both groups have the opportunity to help in ordinary ways, and they choose either to help or not to. Neither one knows that anything bigger is at stake. Both ask the same question: “When did we see you...?” The invitation into the kingdom’s work is so subtle that it doesn’t even seem like an invitation.
One group is wise enough to take the opportunity to help, while the other does not. Are they too busy? Too self-absorbed? Too indifferent? The parable doesn’t tell us why -- only that they fail a test they don’t know they’re taking.
Using this text for Christ the King Sunday forces us toward a paradox. We’re celebrating the day when God’s rule is complete, when God’s power triumphs over evil, violence, prejudice, and hate. But that sweeping victory is revealed in small ways and small opportunities, easily missed. If we imagine the reign of Christ as an unmistakable triumph, then how can it show up in such ordinary ways?
The revealing of this new realm is not just up to God -- surprisingly, and frighteningly, our actions reveal this new order too. When we take the opportunity to go out of our way, to do the work of Jesus, to step aside from our ordinary activities to do what Jesus would do, we also have a part to play in revealing the realm of God. Our actions are part of the revelation.
In the Sermon
Love it or hate it, every American who’s paying attention is aware of Black Friday. Most people have a strongly held opinion about it, from “I can’t wait to shop” to “My friends and I meet up at 5:00 a.m. every year” to “I would never, ever get out of bed to be in that kind of crowd.” In contrast, very few people know that it’s Christ the King Sunday, or what that means in the Christian life. The sermon might look at why the shopping and the sales are more compelling to us. Why is there more feeling of shared purpose around coupons and discounts than around sharing in God’s work?
Or the sermon might look at the everyday places where the reign of Christ shows up for us. Where do we see the realm of God shining through into our world? Where do we do our own work of revealing it, through our actions?
The sermon might also look at the opposite -- the places where we fail to see, or bring to life, the realm of Christ.
Traditionally, the Son of Man coming in his glory at the end of time is an image of judgment. We know we’re going to fall short. But this vision, as Matthew shares it with us, has an extraordinarily low bar. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared since the beginning of the world, Jesus says, but its revelation comes in tiny moments. Small actions disclose it. God’s judgment comes paired with an invitation -- and it’s an offer we get every single day, to help someone in need. The mystery of God’s realm shows up in ways we can understand and participate in. Belonging is simple, Jesus says. We have this humble invitation to share in Jesus’ work, but it comes without fanfare, doesn’t show up on Twitter or Pinterest, has no Facebook page, and buys no advertising. We have to be paying attention.
SECOND THOUGHTS
Judgment Calls
by Chris Keating
Matthew 25:31-46
Lined up nose to tail, the goats and sheep seem confused. Neither the bleating-hearted goats nor the ever-baaing sheep understand why the judge rated the sheep superior and the goats as disreputable. “We did what?” the sheep ask, uncertain about the times and places they had shown acts of mercy. Likewise, the goat crowd seems ticked. “Lord, when did we fail to do feed you, or welcome you, or clothe you?”
The answer, of course, is the same: just as you did or did not do to the least of these, so you did to me. When it comes to judgment calls, Jesus does not mince words. The ones on his right -- the sheep -- are rewarded for performing basic acts of kindness to the king, while the goats are castigated to eternal fire for failing to offer even the tiniest shred of mercy.
Both groups are confused. Neither one remembers ever seeing the king hungry, thirsty, or naked. Still, the judge knows. The judge remembers. While the critters can’t seem to make head or tails of their situation, the judge has the situation under advisement and is about to render an opinion.
The judge knows. It’s the theological theme at the heart of this week’s serving of Matthew’s apocalyptic drama. For Matthew, faithful discipleship is concerned with the everyday practicalities of living in the kingdom. Seeking first the kingdom is such an all-encompassing view of life that individuals don’t have time to judge the deserving from the undeserving. Their lives are bent on offering mercy.
As deaths from drug overdoses reach new peaks across the United States, the opportunity to show mercy becomes a matter of public health. Government statistics show that more than 64,000 people died from drug overdoses in 2016, or an average of 175 per day. The rates have been increasing for several years, leading some to estimate that within ten years more than 650,000 Americans will have died from drug overdoses. By comparison, the city of Boston has about 617,000 residents.
A city of that size might not be considered “the least of these.” But the number arises from the vast sea of addicts whose downward descent into their disease isolates them, pushing them out of sight. Out of sight, out of mind -- but the least of these remain.
In response, Team Sheep might be the volunteers helping care for addicts, the churches that offer recovery groups, the groups passing out blankets to the homeless living under bridges on cold nights, or pastors reaching out to those in treatment. In contrast, Team Goat seems to prefer enhancing the criminalization of drug use, further isolating the least powerful and least able to find help.
Team Sheep, for example, would likely have been troubled by a proposal from a city council member from Middletown, Ohio, who suggested last summer that the city’s EMS squads might need to begin limiting how many times opioid drug users are resuscitated. Council member Daniel Picard proposed a firm two-visit limit per overdose patient, placing a hard stop against “frequent flyers” who do not enter treatment.
“We’ll have that list and when we get a call, the dispatcher will ask who is the person who has overdosed,” Picard said. “And if it’s someone who has already been provided services twice, we’ll advise them that we’re not going to provide further services -- and we will not send out an ambulance.”
Picard’s logic is driven by the costs associated with emergency services as well as the cost of the overdose-reversing drug Narcan. His views are similar to law enforcement officials who have refused to allow their officers to administer Narcan. In the eyes of one sheriff, his deputies aren’t judging who lives and who dies. “I’m not the one that decides if people live or die,” said Richard K. Jones, the sheriff of Ohio’s Butler County. “They decide that when they stick that needle in their arm.”
Who makes the judgment calls in these cases? It’s more than a question of semantics. It’s frequently a question answered as God’s people engage in the sort of deep reflection on what it means to offer mercy, even when we do not know whom we are helping.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Ron Love:
(These illustrations are based on biblical themes represented in this week’s lectionary readings.)
Deliverance
First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, experienced a mass shooting in which 26 people were killed and many more wounded. It was decided that the church would be demolished and a worship service would never again be held there. The church will rebuild on property it owns elsewhere in the community. On Sunday, November 12, one week after the sabbath day shooting by Devin Patrick Kelley, the church held its first worship service following the attack. It was to be conducted at an adjacent community center which could hold a few dozen people. But since hundreds came to worship, the service was held under a large white tent on a nearby baseball field. So many were still in attendance, even though it rained, that the side flaps of the tent were lifted so everyone could see and participate. The church itself was turned into a one-day memorial site. After the service, the doors of the church were opened. All the broken glass had been replaced. All the bullet holes had been repaired. The interior of the church was painted white, including the pulpit. The carpet was also removed so the floor could be painted white. The pews were removed, and in their place were 26 chairs. Each chair, in gold lettering, had the name of a deceased victim. Each chair also had a red rose, except one. One chair had a pink rose for the child who died in his mother’s womb.
Application: We all need deliverance from the hardships and sorrow of this world.
*****
Deliverance
In his book Hostage Bound, Hostage Free,Presbyterian minister Benjamin Weir reveals what it was like to be held hostage. He was captured on the streets of Beirut by a group of Shiite Muslim extremists in May 1984. Weir was imprisoned for 16 torturous months, during which he was often chained and held in solitary confinement. Weir’s devout faith and trust in God sustained him during those perilous times. One routine in particular sustained Weir’s reliance on Jesus. Weir realized that if he dared to stand on the toilet, always in fear of being caught, he could look out the window. Doing so, he could see beyond the Bekaa Valley to the Lebanon Mountains. The snow-covered mountains and rays of early morning sunlight strengthened his faith. Weir confessed: “That sight, and the memory of it throughout the day, spoke to me of the grandeur of the Creator and his good intensions for the world and its people. This gave me hope and a sense of harmony.”
Application: Many things in life hold us hostage, whether it is an addiction to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, money, sex, or television, being a workaholic, or having a hobby out of control. In our daily living we feel ourselves in bondage to pain, health problems, grief, difficult decisions, unruly neighbors, inconsiderate coworkers, and an uncompromising boss. For all these problems and others, each robbing life of its joy and satisfaction, we call upon the name of Jesus for deliverance.
*****
Deliverance
On September 17, 1942, Colonel Leslie R. Groves was selected to oversee the Manhattan Project. The purpose of this project was to develop the world’s first atomic bomb. Even though the assignment came with a promotion to brigadier general, Groves was disappointed with the appointment. Yearning for overseas duty, he was disgruntled by the prospect of filling a trivial administrative position in Washington, DC. Besides, the project held little promise for success. Groves, utterly frustrated, realized that an inadequate supply of uranium had been mined; scientists were still uncertain about the chemical properties of plutonium; production equipment had yet to be designed; acquisitions for plant sites were in abeyance; and the entire nuclear process was only a theory. Perturbed, Groves judged: “The whole endeavor was founded on possibilities rather than probabilities.” But it was in the midst of those possibilities that the A-bomb was created.
Application: We always can have the hope that we will succeed.
*****
Distress
Marissa Mayer, the former CEO of Yahoo, recently testified before Congress regarding state-sponsored computer hackers attacking United States businesses. During the five years she was the CEO of Yahoo, hackers stole the information of billions of users, including names, e-mail addresses, phone numbers, birthdates, and security questions and answers. Mayer said that Yahoo has defended itself from state-sponsored and private hackers. The company even hired professional hackers to seek out flaws in Yahoo’s security system. Yet, Mayer told congressional leaders: “As we all have witnessed: no company, individual, or even government agency is immune from these threats.”
Application: All of us at one time or another are going to find ourselves “scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.”
*****
Distress
In a recent Ziggy comic, the top half of Ziggy’s head is poking up from the bottom of the frame. Only his oversized nose and eyes are visible. But as is often the case, we can tell that Ziggy is thinking a profound thought. On this particular day he shares with us: “one thing about being able to see trouble coming... is that you never know if it’s just dropping by to say hello... or if it plans on hanging around for a while!”
Application: Jesus instructs us to help anyone who is in trouble, whether it be temporary or long-term.
*****
Leadership
When I was an Army chaplain aboard a U.S. Navy vessel, I learned that the captain of the ship is the loneliest man on the ship. He has his own chair in the bridge that sits to the right. He eats in his private quarters alone. He never visits the officers’ quarters where the other officers gather for fellowship. This prevents the captain from developing any personal relationships with crew members and prevents any emotional attachments. It is only with this detachment that the captain can make the difficult life and death decisions he is called upon to make. (Note: You can personalize this story by introducing it with the words “A friend told me...” or “I read about...”)
Application: Jesus is the captain of our church, but we will always find him eating with us in the officers’ quarters.
*****
Shepherding
When I was in elementary school, all of the picture books that we read from showed farms to be very pristine and idealistic. There were flowers. The cows were clean and wholesome. The corrals held the horses in the most tranquil setting. As I grew up in a manufacturing city, with steel and automobile production being most prominent, I never saw a farm. Then one day on a Cub Scout field trip we visited a real working farm. Manure, manure, manure. Flies, flies, flies. Mud, mud, mud. Smelly odors, smelly odors, smelly odors. There were no flowers, only damp, sticky hay. Upon seeing the cows, I really lost any desire to pet one. And the farmer in his rubber knee boots, ragged, torn coat, and unshaven face was hardly the Farmer Jones of my classroom books. The idealism of farming as pictured in my reading books quickly gave way to disillusionment. I no longer resided in the angelic setting of my classroom, but was suddenly catapulted into reality. And the shock and the dismay were hard to comprehend and accept. I also felt somewhat deceived. (Note: You can personalize this story by introducing it with the words “A friend told me...” or “I read about...”)
Application: Shepherding is not always as pleasant an experience as we sometimes like to picture it.
*****
Shepherding
Elton John just celebrated the 25th anniversary of his AIDS foundation with a gala in New York City. Many prominent politicians, actors and actresses were present, including Bill Clinton, Andrew Cuomo, Aretha Franklin, Sheryl Crow, and Glenn Close. John became teary-eyed onstage when Jeanne White, the mother of Ryan White, spoke passionately about how John visited Ryan when he was sick and helped the family financially. Ryan is the Indiana teenager who became the poster child for HIV awareness during the 1980s AIDS crisis. John then spoke, saying that he “hated himself” when he first went to the Ryan home. But the White family was able to help him change his life forever. John said: “What the White family did was light a little candle in my soul. Six months after Ryan passed away, I got help, and I became sober.”
Application: As shepherds, we are to light a little candle in the souls of others.
*****
Wisdom
When I was an Army chaplain aboard a U.S. Navy vessel, I learned that the most secure form of communication is the signal lamp, sometimes called the Morse lamp since Morse code messages are sent from it. It has also been called the Aldis lamp, after Arthur Cyril Webb Aldis who invented a widely used design. This is the most secure form of communication at sea because it can only be intercepted by another ship or submarine in visual range. All other forms of communication that depend upon electronics that have multiple means of detection from a distance that spans the globe. (Note: You can personalize this story by introducing it with the words “A friend told me...” or “I read about...”)
Application: We are to seek wisdom and enlightenment, and we are to be careful of the message we receive.
*****
Wisdom
The accusations against Senate candidate Roy Moore began when the Washington Post revealed that when Moore was a district attorney in his 30s, he sexually molested a 14-year-old girl. Since then a number of women have come forward, reporting that Moore had sexual harassed or assaulted them. Katelyn Beaty, an editor at large with the evangelical magazine Christianity Today, wrote that Moore still receives strong support because of evangelicals’ mistrust of the national media. Beaty went on to note: “Many Christian communities have trouble appropriately responding to sex abuse allegations. There is a default trust in powerful, charismatic male leaders, coupled with a discomfort with women who use their story or voice to challenge the status quo or power structures.”
Application: We cannot let our prejudices prevent us from understanding and accepting truth.
***************
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:
Ephesians 1:15-23
Leader Needed
The church is not the church if Jesus is not the leader.
In the January 13 episode of the CBS series Madam Secretary, the new State Department Chief of Staff Jay Whitman (Sebastian Arcelus) is having some trouble adjusting to his new position. After he overreacts to a marginally inappropriate action by one of the staff, Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord (Téa Leoni) takes him aside and relates a story about leadership from her experience.
Years ago, when she worked in the CIA she was promoted to the position of Task Force Leader. The people she was working with, she says, were amazingly able, well-trained, highly skilled, and thoroughly experienced.
So she decided to step back and let them do their jobs, step in when someone needed her help, but mostly just try to stay out of their way.
“How did that go?” Jay asks.
“Huge mistake,” McCord answers. As it turns out, even the most skilled and well-prepared people want to know what the boundaries and expectations are. They want, indeed they need, a leader.
They want to know who’s in charge.
*****
Matthew 25:31-46
Buy This, Not That
The average cost of a Habitat for Humanity home in the United States is $90,000.
So that means, if you were really rich (like Beyoncé), you could own a Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II Convertible ($1,000,000) or you could pay for building 11 Habitat homes and still have $10,000 left over to buy yourself a nice Nissan Versa or Ford Fiesta.
Or if you were very rich like, say, Nicolas Cage, you could buy yourself a classic 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina ($3,600,000) or you could pay for building 40 Habitat homes.
Or if you were filthy rich like, say, clothing designer Ralph Lauren, you could own a vintage Bentley Blower ($5,000,000) or you could pay for building 55 Habitat houses and still have $50,000 left over to buy yourself a nice 2017 Mercedes Benz SLC-Class... with $2,000 left over for a lovely champagne lunch.
Just sayin’.
*****
Matthew 25:31-46
Wonder
In a secular culture that worships at the altar of young, thin, and beautiful, those who don’t fit that mold can often find themselves defined as “the least of these.”
Raquel Jaramillo was waiting in line to buy some ice cream with her sons when she noticed a girl with facial birth defects who was also in the line. Realizing that her older son (who had just finished 5th grade) might not have a filter on his mouth and fearing he would react in a way that might hurt the child’s feelings, Jaramillo attempted to remove her son from the situation.
The result, of course, was that she only made the situation worse.
Embarrassed and humiliated, Jaramillo kept the experience in the back of her mind for several years until she ran across Natalie Merchant’s 1995 song “Wonder,” which, she said, made her realize that the incident could teach a valuable lesson.
Her children’s novel Wonder was published on February 14, 2012, under the pseudonym R.J. Palacio. A film adaptation of the book is currently showing in theaters.
It tells the story of one year in the life of August (Auggie) Pullman, a ten-year-old boy who suffers from a birth anomaly that disfigured his face and has caused him to endure dozens of major operations to correct some of the problems. Augie refers to his medical condition as “mandibulofacial dysostosis,” but it is most likely Treacher Collins syndrome, and his medical issues have required him to be home schooled. Now, however, it is time for Augie to enter the mainstream and face the outside world in the form of 5th grade, where he must endure insults, taunts, bullying -- and learn to make friends in the midst of it all.
The “wonder” of the title refers to the fact that he actually does endure and overcome.
(For more on Treacher Collins syndrome, click here.)
*****
Matthew 25:31-46
The Least of the Least
A friend of mine tells a story of an experience he had while going to seminary in a big city:
During our second year we all had a class where we were taken downtown and dropped off in the inner city with nothing but two dollars, our driver’s license, and the ratty old clothing we had on our backs. We were told that the bus would pick us up at a certain location two days hence.
Our job was to survive.
Some of us immediately headed to the blood bank and sold a pint of our blood plasma for the going rate at that time: $8. You could sell blood only once every 10 days, but you could sell plasma about every 36 hours.
After that we headed to the local gospel mission to get some dinner.
As we stood in line on the sidewalk waiting for the doors to open, I saw a big man in a frayed army trench coat and nasty, dirty stocking cap walking up and down the line, talking to the people and writing something in a little spiral notebook with a little pew pencil.
When the doors opened we entered the mission and took our seats in the pews and chairs. We would be required to worship before we could eat.
The music was loud and fast, and most of the “customers” knew the songs and sang out surprisingly well. Then came some scripture lessons, a long prayer, and finally the 45-minute long sermon. The sermon ended with an altar call, and we all sat waiting to see if anyone would go up. Eventually three people stood and went forward. The preacher dismissed everyone else to the dining hall while he and some lay ministers stayed behind to pray with the ones who came forward.
Later, I asked the big man who was taking names on the sidewalk what exactly was happening. He explained that at this mission they would not be dismissed to eat until someone got saved. So the regulars took turns getting saved and sacrificed so the others could go eat.
Inevitably, by the time they got to the meal line only the dregs were left.
Now, that is the kind of self-sacrificial love for our brothers and sisters that Jesus is talking about.
*****
Matthew 25:31-46
Heart Strangely Warmed... at Walmart
Holiday hustle and bustle can cause anxiety and frustration in even the most well-prepared and calloused of shoppers, so it’s no wonder the elderly gentleman in line at the Clarksdale, Mississippi, Walmart became flustered while trying to count out the change in his pockets so he could make his purchase.
After losing count and dropping coins and starting over several times he turned to Spring Herbison Bowlin, who was standing behind him in the line, and with voice and hands shaking tried to apologize: “I’m so sorry.”
It was right about then that the cashier, instead of getting angry or frustrated, did something altogether different and extraordinary: she took the man’s hands, dumped all the change on the counter, and told him: “This is not a problem, honey. We will do this together.”
“I was moved by her actions,” Bowlin told TODAY Food. “Simple, genuine kindness is a thing of beauty.”
Bowlin said he just had to say something, so he looked at the woman and said: “Thank you for being so patient with him,” to which she replied, “You shouldn’t have to thank me, baby. What’s wrong with our world is we’ve forgotten how to love one another.”
“My heart was warmed at Walmart during lunch,” Bowlin posted.
Now, this simple but sweet story has certainly warmed the hearts of many others too -- the Facebook post has over 73,000 likes and 40,000 shares. Comments flooded the post, with people saying things like: “Wish there were more people like her!” and “What a beautiful story and reminder of how we should treat others!”
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: Let us all make a joyful noise to God throughout all the earth.
People: Let us worship God with gladness; let us come into God’s presence with singing.
Leader: Know that our God is God; the one who has made us.
People: We are God’s people, and the sheep of God’s pasture.
Leader: Enter God’s gates with thanksgiving and with praise.
People: For God is good; God’s steadfast love endures forever.
OR
Leader: Shout for joy. God reigns.
People: Hallelujah! God is our sovereign forever!
Leader: Our God and Savior reigns in loving kindness.
People: Thanks be to God for grace and salvation.
Leader: God invites us to reign in the same way.
People: We will take our place as God’s servants.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
“O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing”
found in:
UMH: 57, 58, 59
H82: 493
PH: 466
AAHH: 184
NNBH: 23
NCH: 42
CH: 5
LBW: 559
ELA: 886
W&P: 96
AMEC: 1
Renew: 32
“Come, Thou Almighty King”
found in:
UMH: 61
H82: 365
PH: 139
AAHH: 327
NNBH: 38
NCH: 275
CH: 27
LBW: 522
ELA: 408
W&P: 148
AMEC: 7
“Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven”
found in:
UMH: 66
H82: 410
PH: 478
CH: 23
LBW: 549
ELA: 864, 865
W&P: 82
AMEC: 70
Renew: 53
“When Morning Gilds the Skies”
found in:
UMH: 185
H82: 427
PH: 487
AAHH: 186
NCH: 86
CH: 100
LBW: 545, 546
ELA: 853
W&P: 111
AMEC: 29
“Jesus Shall Reign”
found in:
UMH: 157
H82: 544
PH: 423
NNBH: 10
NCH: 300
CH: 95
LBW: 530
ELA: 434
W&P: 341
AMEC: 96
Renew: 296
“Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life”
found in:
UMH: 427
H82: 609
PH: 408
NCH: 543
CH: 665
LBW: 429
ELA: 719
W&P: 591
AMEC: 561
“Jesu, Jesu”
found in:
UMH: 432
H82: 602
PH: 367
NCH: 498
CH: 600
ELA: 708
W&P: 273
Renew: 289
“Rejoice, the Lord is King”
found in:
UMH: 715, 716
H82: 481
PH: 155
NCH: 303
CH: 699
LBW: 171
ELA: 430
W&P: 342
AMEC: 88, 89
“We Will Glorify”
found in:
CCB: 19
Renew: 33
“Sing unto the Lord a New Song”
found in:
CCB: 16
Renew: 99
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982 (The Episcopal Church)
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African-American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELA: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who reigns in love over all creation: Grant us the grace to live into your realm as we reach out in love and care to others; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We worship you, O God, who reigns over all creation in love. Shower your grace upon us that we might be true citizens of your realm. Give us hearts of love that reach out to love and care for others. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins, and especially our failure to understand that God is powerful because God is love.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We worship power and prestige, wealth and material goods. We forget that the One who rules over all does so as a loving shepherd cares for the flock. We push aside others so that we can get more, when we already have much more than we need. Forgive us, and call us back to your flock that we may care for others as you care for us. Amen.
Leader: God is our Ruler and our Good Shepherd. God welcomes all of us into the flock. Receive God’s grace and forgiveness, and share those with others.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord’s Prayer)
Praise and glory to you, O God, who rules over creation in loving kindness.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We worship power and prestige, wealth and material goods. We forget that the One who rules over all does so as a loving shepherd cares for the flock. We push aside others so that we can get more, when we already have much more than we need. Forgive us, and call us back to your flock that we may care for others as you care for us.
We give you thanks for all the ways in which you make your love and care known to us. We thank you for creation with all its bounty and beauty. We thank you for those you give us who share your love with us. We thank you for your Church and for Jesus who leads us to you.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for one another. We feel the needs and sorrows of those around us and those we read about or see on the television. We know your care for them and seek their healing and wholeness. Empower us with your Spirit that we may be your presence to those around us.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, saying:
Our Father . . . Amen.
(or if the Lord’s Prayer is not used at this point in the service)
All this we ask in the Name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Children’s Sermon Starter
Perhaps you had a game you liked to play that left one person the winner, like shooting basketballs for “HORSE” for example. We played “King on the Mountain,” although we didn’t have any mountains and very few real hills -- but any pile of dirt would do. Someone was “the king” and stood on the top, and we all tried to pull, knock, or otherwise dislodge them from their place so we could be “the king.” We didn’t play too often because it usually ended with someone getting hurt, and the same big guy would always end up winning anyway. Of course, real mountain climbers don’t fight with each other, they help each other. And Jesus shows us how a real king or ruler acts -- out of love and concern for others.
CHILDREN’S SERMON
The Power to Shine
by Dean Feldmeyer
Matthew 25:31-46
Items needed:
* Two flashlights -- one with batteries, and one without.
* Two batteries that will fit into the battery-less flashlight.
(Even better, if it can be done, is to also have a small, inexpensive flashlight for each child.)
(When the children have come forward and are seated, show them the flashlight with batteries.) Good morning!Today we’re talking about power.This flashlight has power, doesn’t it? How do you know that it has power? (Allow responses.) That’s right. We know it has power because it creates light, right?
(Produce the flashlight with no batteries.) What about this flashlight? Does it have power? No? How can you tell?Ahhh, of course. It isn’t producing light, is it?If it has no power, it can’t produce light.
Now, how do you know if a person has power? How can you tell if a person is “power-full”?
If they have lots of money, does that mean they have power?
If they have lots of muscles, does that mean they have power?
If they can make other people do what they want, does that mean they have power?
What about if they can spread the light of Jesus to other people? What if they can spread the light of God’s love and kindness and gentleness? Does that mean they have power?
You know, one of the things the Bible tells us is that Jesus is the “light of the world.”
(Put batteries in the powerless flashlight.) So if we let Jesus into our life, it’s like letting batteries into this flashlight. Jesus is our battery. If we let him into our lives, then we have the power to shine his light on others -- his light of love, peace, joy, kindness, and happiness.
And that’s what Jesus wants us to do -- spread his light to the whole world, starting where you are and moving out from there to the whole world.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, November 26, 2017, issue.
Copyright 2017 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
Team member Chris Keating shares some additional thoughts on one area where we might indicate our readiness for the kingdom -- our actions in responding to the crisis of addiction gripping our society. Are we sheep or are we goats? Chris suggests that Team Sheep would offer helping care and treatment, while Team Goat is more likely to advocate for criminalizing drug use -- engaging in judgment that perhaps should be reserved for our real Sovereign.
Jesus Offers a Black Friday Deal
by Mary Austin
Matthew 25:31-46
Jesus needs a better publicist... maybe some social media help. Black Friday shopping now has its own website, dedicated to curating the best deals available. Amazon is offering a whole week of sales, USA Today tells us where to shop, and even Forbes magazine has its business writers evaluating deals and giving advice.
Competing with Black Friday this weekend is Christ the King Sunday, with no deals, no media frenzy, and no website -- just a story about sheep and goats. It’s easy to see why Black Friday is the bigger deal. Almost every American is aware of Black Friday, and some of us love the thrill of the hunt. We “delight over the idea of fighting over the last Nintendo Wii, or whatever the item of the year happens to be.” Competition creates the feeling of hunting for something scarce, which creates positive emotions in us. “At certain levels, consumers enjoy arousal and challenges during the shopping process,” researcher Sang-Eun Byun told the Washington Post’s Olga Khazan. “They enjoy something that’s harder to get, and it makes them feel playful and excited.”
No one ever feels playful and excited about Christ the King. Living in a country without kings, we don’t really know what to make of this image. Calling it the “Realm of Christ Sunday” helps, but it’s still way less visceral and immediate than 55-inch TVs on sale and deeply discounted iPhones.
In the News
Just like the sheep and the goats in Jesus’ parable, there are two groups of people on Black Friday. There are “the ones who stand in line, and the ones who think those other people are wacky. If you’re the latter, you may even spend your Friday morning watching news footage of the mayhem and rolling your eyes.”
According to the Atlantic, our brains are wired to love things like Black Friday. Standing is line is a holiday shopping ritual that speaks to our need for kinship, and “loyalty has to do with the tradition behind Black Friday, found a study out of Winthrop University.” Coupons evoke a positive feeling, and one scientist says we view them “as a social gesture. ‘We’re so engrained to being social creatures that even receiving a coupon online is viewed by the brain as a social experience.... We’re building a relationship with an online shopping site like it’s a personal relationship.’ The same study also found that coupons reduced stress and increased happiness in some participants. Ergo, on Black Friday, the biggest coupon day of the year must make this hormone go wild in some shoppers’ brains, making it a very relaxing and lovely experience.” Black Friday is about social connection, not just buying things.
And it evokes a wealth of positive experiences, at least for the shoppers. The Atlantic also notes: “The people who choose to partake in Black Friday will likely associate many of its aspects with positive feelings. In fact, the day doesn’t evoke angry or related emotions for many of its participants, found a study from Eastern Illinois University. The researchers observed consumer behaviors and emotions on that day and... calmness, happiness, and courteousness ranked higher than anger and anxiety.”
Other shoppers and even retailers are opting out of Black Friday, and “taking a stand against Black Friday, or at least its capitalist undertones: REI, for the third time in a row, will close its doors on Black Friday and instead promote its #OptOutside campaign, encouraging people to spend time outdoors; Everlane often donates proceeds to its factory workers; and Patagonia last year donated 100 percent of Black Friday sales to environmental causes.”
Black Friday reveals again the gap between wealthy people and poor people. Videos of shoppers fighting over deals allow us to feel disdain for poor people instead of empathy. “Look at these hilarious poor people, struggling to take advantage of a deal on something they might not otherwise be able to afford on items that we take for granted, we joke on Twitter. The message is the same: this is shameful, materialistic behavior. And by pointing it out, we differentiate ourselves, reaffirm our class status as being above the fray of the lowly and desperate. The exact demography of shoppers on Thanksgiving and Black Friday isn’t clear, with the former being too new a trend to track, and it seems to have been changing over recent years, with a higher percentage of millennials taking part of late, but studies have shown the shoppers are more likely to be non-white, or single mothers. There’s no denying the demographics that seem to show up again in the type of videos we all find so hilarious, however.” Black Friday shopping looks materialistic, and it may instead be an act of devotion. It can be the one opportunity to buy a child or loved one the gift they want, at a price someone can afford. Perhaps, if done with that spirit of generosity, it’s a participation in God’s realm.
In the Scriptures
In this parable, the kingdom of God has a hidden quality. It’s not immediately obvious when the invitation comes. It’s certainly not as well advertised as any Black Friday sale. Both groups of people -- the sheep and the goats -- have the opportunity to embrace the cause of Jesus. They encounter the same people in need, and they see the same things. Both groups have the opportunity to help in ordinary ways, and they choose either to help or not to. Neither one knows that anything bigger is at stake. Both ask the same question: “When did we see you...?” The invitation into the kingdom’s work is so subtle that it doesn’t even seem like an invitation.
One group is wise enough to take the opportunity to help, while the other does not. Are they too busy? Too self-absorbed? Too indifferent? The parable doesn’t tell us why -- only that they fail a test they don’t know they’re taking.
Using this text for Christ the King Sunday forces us toward a paradox. We’re celebrating the day when God’s rule is complete, when God’s power triumphs over evil, violence, prejudice, and hate. But that sweeping victory is revealed in small ways and small opportunities, easily missed. If we imagine the reign of Christ as an unmistakable triumph, then how can it show up in such ordinary ways?
The revealing of this new realm is not just up to God -- surprisingly, and frighteningly, our actions reveal this new order too. When we take the opportunity to go out of our way, to do the work of Jesus, to step aside from our ordinary activities to do what Jesus would do, we also have a part to play in revealing the realm of God. Our actions are part of the revelation.
In the Sermon
Love it or hate it, every American who’s paying attention is aware of Black Friday. Most people have a strongly held opinion about it, from “I can’t wait to shop” to “My friends and I meet up at 5:00 a.m. every year” to “I would never, ever get out of bed to be in that kind of crowd.” In contrast, very few people know that it’s Christ the King Sunday, or what that means in the Christian life. The sermon might look at why the shopping and the sales are more compelling to us. Why is there more feeling of shared purpose around coupons and discounts than around sharing in God’s work?
Or the sermon might look at the everyday places where the reign of Christ shows up for us. Where do we see the realm of God shining through into our world? Where do we do our own work of revealing it, through our actions?
The sermon might also look at the opposite -- the places where we fail to see, or bring to life, the realm of Christ.
Traditionally, the Son of Man coming in his glory at the end of time is an image of judgment. We know we’re going to fall short. But this vision, as Matthew shares it with us, has an extraordinarily low bar. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared since the beginning of the world, Jesus says, but its revelation comes in tiny moments. Small actions disclose it. God’s judgment comes paired with an invitation -- and it’s an offer we get every single day, to help someone in need. The mystery of God’s realm shows up in ways we can understand and participate in. Belonging is simple, Jesus says. We have this humble invitation to share in Jesus’ work, but it comes without fanfare, doesn’t show up on Twitter or Pinterest, has no Facebook page, and buys no advertising. We have to be paying attention.
SECOND THOUGHTS
Judgment Calls
by Chris Keating
Matthew 25:31-46
Lined up nose to tail, the goats and sheep seem confused. Neither the bleating-hearted goats nor the ever-baaing sheep understand why the judge rated the sheep superior and the goats as disreputable. “We did what?” the sheep ask, uncertain about the times and places they had shown acts of mercy. Likewise, the goat crowd seems ticked. “Lord, when did we fail to do feed you, or welcome you, or clothe you?”
The answer, of course, is the same: just as you did or did not do to the least of these, so you did to me. When it comes to judgment calls, Jesus does not mince words. The ones on his right -- the sheep -- are rewarded for performing basic acts of kindness to the king, while the goats are castigated to eternal fire for failing to offer even the tiniest shred of mercy.
Both groups are confused. Neither one remembers ever seeing the king hungry, thirsty, or naked. Still, the judge knows. The judge remembers. While the critters can’t seem to make head or tails of their situation, the judge has the situation under advisement and is about to render an opinion.
The judge knows. It’s the theological theme at the heart of this week’s serving of Matthew’s apocalyptic drama. For Matthew, faithful discipleship is concerned with the everyday practicalities of living in the kingdom. Seeking first the kingdom is such an all-encompassing view of life that individuals don’t have time to judge the deserving from the undeserving. Their lives are bent on offering mercy.
As deaths from drug overdoses reach new peaks across the United States, the opportunity to show mercy becomes a matter of public health. Government statistics show that more than 64,000 people died from drug overdoses in 2016, or an average of 175 per day. The rates have been increasing for several years, leading some to estimate that within ten years more than 650,000 Americans will have died from drug overdoses. By comparison, the city of Boston has about 617,000 residents.
A city of that size might not be considered “the least of these.” But the number arises from the vast sea of addicts whose downward descent into their disease isolates them, pushing them out of sight. Out of sight, out of mind -- but the least of these remain.
In response, Team Sheep might be the volunteers helping care for addicts, the churches that offer recovery groups, the groups passing out blankets to the homeless living under bridges on cold nights, or pastors reaching out to those in treatment. In contrast, Team Goat seems to prefer enhancing the criminalization of drug use, further isolating the least powerful and least able to find help.
Team Sheep, for example, would likely have been troubled by a proposal from a city council member from Middletown, Ohio, who suggested last summer that the city’s EMS squads might need to begin limiting how many times opioid drug users are resuscitated. Council member Daniel Picard proposed a firm two-visit limit per overdose patient, placing a hard stop against “frequent flyers” who do not enter treatment.
“We’ll have that list and when we get a call, the dispatcher will ask who is the person who has overdosed,” Picard said. “And if it’s someone who has already been provided services twice, we’ll advise them that we’re not going to provide further services -- and we will not send out an ambulance.”
Picard’s logic is driven by the costs associated with emergency services as well as the cost of the overdose-reversing drug Narcan. His views are similar to law enforcement officials who have refused to allow their officers to administer Narcan. In the eyes of one sheriff, his deputies aren’t judging who lives and who dies. “I’m not the one that decides if people live or die,” said Richard K. Jones, the sheriff of Ohio’s Butler County. “They decide that when they stick that needle in their arm.”
Who makes the judgment calls in these cases? It’s more than a question of semantics. It’s frequently a question answered as God’s people engage in the sort of deep reflection on what it means to offer mercy, even when we do not know whom we are helping.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Ron Love:
(These illustrations are based on biblical themes represented in this week’s lectionary readings.)
Deliverance
First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, experienced a mass shooting in which 26 people were killed and many more wounded. It was decided that the church would be demolished and a worship service would never again be held there. The church will rebuild on property it owns elsewhere in the community. On Sunday, November 12, one week after the sabbath day shooting by Devin Patrick Kelley, the church held its first worship service following the attack. It was to be conducted at an adjacent community center which could hold a few dozen people. But since hundreds came to worship, the service was held under a large white tent on a nearby baseball field. So many were still in attendance, even though it rained, that the side flaps of the tent were lifted so everyone could see and participate. The church itself was turned into a one-day memorial site. After the service, the doors of the church were opened. All the broken glass had been replaced. All the bullet holes had been repaired. The interior of the church was painted white, including the pulpit. The carpet was also removed so the floor could be painted white. The pews were removed, and in their place were 26 chairs. Each chair, in gold lettering, had the name of a deceased victim. Each chair also had a red rose, except one. One chair had a pink rose for the child who died in his mother’s womb.
Application: We all need deliverance from the hardships and sorrow of this world.
*****
Deliverance
In his book Hostage Bound, Hostage Free,Presbyterian minister Benjamin Weir reveals what it was like to be held hostage. He was captured on the streets of Beirut by a group of Shiite Muslim extremists in May 1984. Weir was imprisoned for 16 torturous months, during which he was often chained and held in solitary confinement. Weir’s devout faith and trust in God sustained him during those perilous times. One routine in particular sustained Weir’s reliance on Jesus. Weir realized that if he dared to stand on the toilet, always in fear of being caught, he could look out the window. Doing so, he could see beyond the Bekaa Valley to the Lebanon Mountains. The snow-covered mountains and rays of early morning sunlight strengthened his faith. Weir confessed: “That sight, and the memory of it throughout the day, spoke to me of the grandeur of the Creator and his good intensions for the world and its people. This gave me hope and a sense of harmony.”
Application: Many things in life hold us hostage, whether it is an addiction to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, money, sex, or television, being a workaholic, or having a hobby out of control. In our daily living we feel ourselves in bondage to pain, health problems, grief, difficult decisions, unruly neighbors, inconsiderate coworkers, and an uncompromising boss. For all these problems and others, each robbing life of its joy and satisfaction, we call upon the name of Jesus for deliverance.
*****
Deliverance
On September 17, 1942, Colonel Leslie R. Groves was selected to oversee the Manhattan Project. The purpose of this project was to develop the world’s first atomic bomb. Even though the assignment came with a promotion to brigadier general, Groves was disappointed with the appointment. Yearning for overseas duty, he was disgruntled by the prospect of filling a trivial administrative position in Washington, DC. Besides, the project held little promise for success. Groves, utterly frustrated, realized that an inadequate supply of uranium had been mined; scientists were still uncertain about the chemical properties of plutonium; production equipment had yet to be designed; acquisitions for plant sites were in abeyance; and the entire nuclear process was only a theory. Perturbed, Groves judged: “The whole endeavor was founded on possibilities rather than probabilities.” But it was in the midst of those possibilities that the A-bomb was created.
Application: We always can have the hope that we will succeed.
*****
Distress
Marissa Mayer, the former CEO of Yahoo, recently testified before Congress regarding state-sponsored computer hackers attacking United States businesses. During the five years she was the CEO of Yahoo, hackers stole the information of billions of users, including names, e-mail addresses, phone numbers, birthdates, and security questions and answers. Mayer said that Yahoo has defended itself from state-sponsored and private hackers. The company even hired professional hackers to seek out flaws in Yahoo’s security system. Yet, Mayer told congressional leaders: “As we all have witnessed: no company, individual, or even government agency is immune from these threats.”
Application: All of us at one time or another are going to find ourselves “scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.”
*****
Distress
In a recent Ziggy comic, the top half of Ziggy’s head is poking up from the bottom of the frame. Only his oversized nose and eyes are visible. But as is often the case, we can tell that Ziggy is thinking a profound thought. On this particular day he shares with us: “one thing about being able to see trouble coming... is that you never know if it’s just dropping by to say hello... or if it plans on hanging around for a while!”
Application: Jesus instructs us to help anyone who is in trouble, whether it be temporary or long-term.
*****
Leadership
When I was an Army chaplain aboard a U.S. Navy vessel, I learned that the captain of the ship is the loneliest man on the ship. He has his own chair in the bridge that sits to the right. He eats in his private quarters alone. He never visits the officers’ quarters where the other officers gather for fellowship. This prevents the captain from developing any personal relationships with crew members and prevents any emotional attachments. It is only with this detachment that the captain can make the difficult life and death decisions he is called upon to make. (Note: You can personalize this story by introducing it with the words “A friend told me...” or “I read about...”)
Application: Jesus is the captain of our church, but we will always find him eating with us in the officers’ quarters.
*****
Shepherding
When I was in elementary school, all of the picture books that we read from showed farms to be very pristine and idealistic. There were flowers. The cows were clean and wholesome. The corrals held the horses in the most tranquil setting. As I grew up in a manufacturing city, with steel and automobile production being most prominent, I never saw a farm. Then one day on a Cub Scout field trip we visited a real working farm. Manure, manure, manure. Flies, flies, flies. Mud, mud, mud. Smelly odors, smelly odors, smelly odors. There were no flowers, only damp, sticky hay. Upon seeing the cows, I really lost any desire to pet one. And the farmer in his rubber knee boots, ragged, torn coat, and unshaven face was hardly the Farmer Jones of my classroom books. The idealism of farming as pictured in my reading books quickly gave way to disillusionment. I no longer resided in the angelic setting of my classroom, but was suddenly catapulted into reality. And the shock and the dismay were hard to comprehend and accept. I also felt somewhat deceived. (Note: You can personalize this story by introducing it with the words “A friend told me...” or “I read about...”)
Application: Shepherding is not always as pleasant an experience as we sometimes like to picture it.
*****
Shepherding
Elton John just celebrated the 25th anniversary of his AIDS foundation with a gala in New York City. Many prominent politicians, actors and actresses were present, including Bill Clinton, Andrew Cuomo, Aretha Franklin, Sheryl Crow, and Glenn Close. John became teary-eyed onstage when Jeanne White, the mother of Ryan White, spoke passionately about how John visited Ryan when he was sick and helped the family financially. Ryan is the Indiana teenager who became the poster child for HIV awareness during the 1980s AIDS crisis. John then spoke, saying that he “hated himself” when he first went to the Ryan home. But the White family was able to help him change his life forever. John said: “What the White family did was light a little candle in my soul. Six months after Ryan passed away, I got help, and I became sober.”
Application: As shepherds, we are to light a little candle in the souls of others.
*****
Wisdom
When I was an Army chaplain aboard a U.S. Navy vessel, I learned that the most secure form of communication is the signal lamp, sometimes called the Morse lamp since Morse code messages are sent from it. It has also been called the Aldis lamp, after Arthur Cyril Webb Aldis who invented a widely used design. This is the most secure form of communication at sea because it can only be intercepted by another ship or submarine in visual range. All other forms of communication that depend upon electronics that have multiple means of detection from a distance that spans the globe. (Note: You can personalize this story by introducing it with the words “A friend told me...” or “I read about...”)
Application: We are to seek wisdom and enlightenment, and we are to be careful of the message we receive.
*****
Wisdom
The accusations against Senate candidate Roy Moore began when the Washington Post revealed that when Moore was a district attorney in his 30s, he sexually molested a 14-year-old girl. Since then a number of women have come forward, reporting that Moore had sexual harassed or assaulted them. Katelyn Beaty, an editor at large with the evangelical magazine Christianity Today, wrote that Moore still receives strong support because of evangelicals’ mistrust of the national media. Beaty went on to note: “Many Christian communities have trouble appropriately responding to sex abuse allegations. There is a default trust in powerful, charismatic male leaders, coupled with a discomfort with women who use their story or voice to challenge the status quo or power structures.”
Application: We cannot let our prejudices prevent us from understanding and accepting truth.
***************
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:
Ephesians 1:15-23
Leader Needed
The church is not the church if Jesus is not the leader.
In the January 13 episode of the CBS series Madam Secretary, the new State Department Chief of Staff Jay Whitman (Sebastian Arcelus) is having some trouble adjusting to his new position. After he overreacts to a marginally inappropriate action by one of the staff, Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord (Téa Leoni) takes him aside and relates a story about leadership from her experience.
Years ago, when she worked in the CIA she was promoted to the position of Task Force Leader. The people she was working with, she says, were amazingly able, well-trained, highly skilled, and thoroughly experienced.
So she decided to step back and let them do their jobs, step in when someone needed her help, but mostly just try to stay out of their way.
“How did that go?” Jay asks.
“Huge mistake,” McCord answers. As it turns out, even the most skilled and well-prepared people want to know what the boundaries and expectations are. They want, indeed they need, a leader.
They want to know who’s in charge.
*****
Matthew 25:31-46
Buy This, Not That
The average cost of a Habitat for Humanity home in the United States is $90,000.
So that means, if you were really rich (like Beyoncé), you could own a Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II Convertible ($1,000,000) or you could pay for building 11 Habitat homes and still have $10,000 left over to buy yourself a nice Nissan Versa or Ford Fiesta.
Or if you were very rich like, say, Nicolas Cage, you could buy yourself a classic 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina ($3,600,000) or you could pay for building 40 Habitat homes.
Or if you were filthy rich like, say, clothing designer Ralph Lauren, you could own a vintage Bentley Blower ($5,000,000) or you could pay for building 55 Habitat houses and still have $50,000 left over to buy yourself a nice 2017 Mercedes Benz SLC-Class... with $2,000 left over for a lovely champagne lunch.
Just sayin’.
*****
Matthew 25:31-46
Wonder
In a secular culture that worships at the altar of young, thin, and beautiful, those who don’t fit that mold can often find themselves defined as “the least of these.”
Raquel Jaramillo was waiting in line to buy some ice cream with her sons when she noticed a girl with facial birth defects who was also in the line. Realizing that her older son (who had just finished 5th grade) might not have a filter on his mouth and fearing he would react in a way that might hurt the child’s feelings, Jaramillo attempted to remove her son from the situation.
The result, of course, was that she only made the situation worse.
Embarrassed and humiliated, Jaramillo kept the experience in the back of her mind for several years until she ran across Natalie Merchant’s 1995 song “Wonder,” which, she said, made her realize that the incident could teach a valuable lesson.
Her children’s novel Wonder was published on February 14, 2012, under the pseudonym R.J. Palacio. A film adaptation of the book is currently showing in theaters.
It tells the story of one year in the life of August (Auggie) Pullman, a ten-year-old boy who suffers from a birth anomaly that disfigured his face and has caused him to endure dozens of major operations to correct some of the problems. Augie refers to his medical condition as “mandibulofacial dysostosis,” but it is most likely Treacher Collins syndrome, and his medical issues have required him to be home schooled. Now, however, it is time for Augie to enter the mainstream and face the outside world in the form of 5th grade, where he must endure insults, taunts, bullying -- and learn to make friends in the midst of it all.
The “wonder” of the title refers to the fact that he actually does endure and overcome.
(For more on Treacher Collins syndrome, click here.)
*****
Matthew 25:31-46
The Least of the Least
A friend of mine tells a story of an experience he had while going to seminary in a big city:
During our second year we all had a class where we were taken downtown and dropped off in the inner city with nothing but two dollars, our driver’s license, and the ratty old clothing we had on our backs. We were told that the bus would pick us up at a certain location two days hence.
Our job was to survive.
Some of us immediately headed to the blood bank and sold a pint of our blood plasma for the going rate at that time: $8. You could sell blood only once every 10 days, but you could sell plasma about every 36 hours.
After that we headed to the local gospel mission to get some dinner.
As we stood in line on the sidewalk waiting for the doors to open, I saw a big man in a frayed army trench coat and nasty, dirty stocking cap walking up and down the line, talking to the people and writing something in a little spiral notebook with a little pew pencil.
When the doors opened we entered the mission and took our seats in the pews and chairs. We would be required to worship before we could eat.
The music was loud and fast, and most of the “customers” knew the songs and sang out surprisingly well. Then came some scripture lessons, a long prayer, and finally the 45-minute long sermon. The sermon ended with an altar call, and we all sat waiting to see if anyone would go up. Eventually three people stood and went forward. The preacher dismissed everyone else to the dining hall while he and some lay ministers stayed behind to pray with the ones who came forward.
Later, I asked the big man who was taking names on the sidewalk what exactly was happening. He explained that at this mission they would not be dismissed to eat until someone got saved. So the regulars took turns getting saved and sacrificed so the others could go eat.
Inevitably, by the time they got to the meal line only the dregs were left.
Now, that is the kind of self-sacrificial love for our brothers and sisters that Jesus is talking about.
*****
Matthew 25:31-46
Heart Strangely Warmed... at Walmart
Holiday hustle and bustle can cause anxiety and frustration in even the most well-prepared and calloused of shoppers, so it’s no wonder the elderly gentleman in line at the Clarksdale, Mississippi, Walmart became flustered while trying to count out the change in his pockets so he could make his purchase.
After losing count and dropping coins and starting over several times he turned to Spring Herbison Bowlin, who was standing behind him in the line, and with voice and hands shaking tried to apologize: “I’m so sorry.”
It was right about then that the cashier, instead of getting angry or frustrated, did something altogether different and extraordinary: she took the man’s hands, dumped all the change on the counter, and told him: “This is not a problem, honey. We will do this together.”
“I was moved by her actions,” Bowlin told TODAY Food. “Simple, genuine kindness is a thing of beauty.”
Bowlin said he just had to say something, so he looked at the woman and said: “Thank you for being so patient with him,” to which she replied, “You shouldn’t have to thank me, baby. What’s wrong with our world is we’ve forgotten how to love one another.”
“My heart was warmed at Walmart during lunch,” Bowlin posted.
Now, this simple but sweet story has certainly warmed the hearts of many others too -- the Facebook post has over 73,000 likes and 40,000 shares. Comments flooded the post, with people saying things like: “Wish there were more people like her!” and “What a beautiful story and reminder of how we should treat others!”
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: Let us all make a joyful noise to God throughout all the earth.
People: Let us worship God with gladness; let us come into God’s presence with singing.
Leader: Know that our God is God; the one who has made us.
People: We are God’s people, and the sheep of God’s pasture.
Leader: Enter God’s gates with thanksgiving and with praise.
People: For God is good; God’s steadfast love endures forever.
OR
Leader: Shout for joy. God reigns.
People: Hallelujah! God is our sovereign forever!
Leader: Our God and Savior reigns in loving kindness.
People: Thanks be to God for grace and salvation.
Leader: God invites us to reign in the same way.
People: We will take our place as God’s servants.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
“O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing”
found in:
UMH: 57, 58, 59
H82: 493
PH: 466
AAHH: 184
NNBH: 23
NCH: 42
CH: 5
LBW: 559
ELA: 886
W&P: 96
AMEC: 1
Renew: 32
“Come, Thou Almighty King”
found in:
UMH: 61
H82: 365
PH: 139
AAHH: 327
NNBH: 38
NCH: 275
CH: 27
LBW: 522
ELA: 408
W&P: 148
AMEC: 7
“Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven”
found in:
UMH: 66
H82: 410
PH: 478
CH: 23
LBW: 549
ELA: 864, 865
W&P: 82
AMEC: 70
Renew: 53
“When Morning Gilds the Skies”
found in:
UMH: 185
H82: 427
PH: 487
AAHH: 186
NCH: 86
CH: 100
LBW: 545, 546
ELA: 853
W&P: 111
AMEC: 29
“Jesus Shall Reign”
found in:
UMH: 157
H82: 544
PH: 423
NNBH: 10
NCH: 300
CH: 95
LBW: 530
ELA: 434
W&P: 341
AMEC: 96
Renew: 296
“Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life”
found in:
UMH: 427
H82: 609
PH: 408
NCH: 543
CH: 665
LBW: 429
ELA: 719
W&P: 591
AMEC: 561
“Jesu, Jesu”
found in:
UMH: 432
H82: 602
PH: 367
NCH: 498
CH: 600
ELA: 708
W&P: 273
Renew: 289
“Rejoice, the Lord is King”
found in:
UMH: 715, 716
H82: 481
PH: 155
NCH: 303
CH: 699
LBW: 171
ELA: 430
W&P: 342
AMEC: 88, 89
“We Will Glorify”
found in:
CCB: 19
Renew: 33
“Sing unto the Lord a New Song”
found in:
CCB: 16
Renew: 99
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982 (The Episcopal Church)
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African-American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELA: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who reigns in love over all creation: Grant us the grace to live into your realm as we reach out in love and care to others; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We worship you, O God, who reigns over all creation in love. Shower your grace upon us that we might be true citizens of your realm. Give us hearts of love that reach out to love and care for others. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins, and especially our failure to understand that God is powerful because God is love.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We worship power and prestige, wealth and material goods. We forget that the One who rules over all does so as a loving shepherd cares for the flock. We push aside others so that we can get more, when we already have much more than we need. Forgive us, and call us back to your flock that we may care for others as you care for us. Amen.
Leader: God is our Ruler and our Good Shepherd. God welcomes all of us into the flock. Receive God’s grace and forgiveness, and share those with others.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord’s Prayer)
Praise and glory to you, O God, who rules over creation in loving kindness.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We worship power and prestige, wealth and material goods. We forget that the One who rules over all does so as a loving shepherd cares for the flock. We push aside others so that we can get more, when we already have much more than we need. Forgive us, and call us back to your flock that we may care for others as you care for us.
We give you thanks for all the ways in which you make your love and care known to us. We thank you for creation with all its bounty and beauty. We thank you for those you give us who share your love with us. We thank you for your Church and for Jesus who leads us to you.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for one another. We feel the needs and sorrows of those around us and those we read about or see on the television. We know your care for them and seek their healing and wholeness. Empower us with your Spirit that we may be your presence to those around us.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, saying:
Our Father . . . Amen.
(or if the Lord’s Prayer is not used at this point in the service)
All this we ask in the Name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Children’s Sermon Starter
Perhaps you had a game you liked to play that left one person the winner, like shooting basketballs for “HORSE” for example. We played “King on the Mountain,” although we didn’t have any mountains and very few real hills -- but any pile of dirt would do. Someone was “the king” and stood on the top, and we all tried to pull, knock, or otherwise dislodge them from their place so we could be “the king.” We didn’t play too often because it usually ended with someone getting hurt, and the same big guy would always end up winning anyway. Of course, real mountain climbers don’t fight with each other, they help each other. And Jesus shows us how a real king or ruler acts -- out of love and concern for others.
CHILDREN’S SERMON
The Power to Shine
by Dean Feldmeyer
Matthew 25:31-46
Items needed:
* Two flashlights -- one with batteries, and one without.
* Two batteries that will fit into the battery-less flashlight.
(Even better, if it can be done, is to also have a small, inexpensive flashlight for each child.)
(When the children have come forward and are seated, show them the flashlight with batteries.) Good morning!Today we’re talking about power.This flashlight has power, doesn’t it? How do you know that it has power? (Allow responses.) That’s right. We know it has power because it creates light, right?
(Produce the flashlight with no batteries.) What about this flashlight? Does it have power? No? How can you tell?Ahhh, of course. It isn’t producing light, is it?If it has no power, it can’t produce light.
Now, how do you know if a person has power? How can you tell if a person is “power-full”?
If they have lots of money, does that mean they have power?
If they have lots of muscles, does that mean they have power?
If they can make other people do what they want, does that mean they have power?
What about if they can spread the light of Jesus to other people? What if they can spread the light of God’s love and kindness and gentleness? Does that mean they have power?
You know, one of the things the Bible tells us is that Jesus is the “light of the world.”
(Put batteries in the powerless flashlight.) So if we let Jesus into our life, it’s like letting batteries into this flashlight. Jesus is our battery. If we let him into our lives, then we have the power to shine his light on others -- his light of love, peace, joy, kindness, and happiness.
And that’s what Jesus wants us to do -- spread his light to the whole world, starting where you are and moving out from there to the whole world.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, November 26, 2017, issue.
Copyright 2017 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
